Tim Constable on Paris
“In 1975 Tim Constable and Clive Barnwell, who met at the same grammar school and shared an interest in songwriting, had been developing their skills for about five years. The time had come to try and get their work into the public arena, but at that time were not playing, other than Clive doing the odd gig at teacher training college. Then they discovered that Coventry club band ‘Drops of Brandy’ had advertised for original material to add to their covers act. They met up with Tim and Clive, and expressed an interest in using some songs. At the same time, Tim had come to the decision that the only way their songs would start getting played was for him to join a band as keyboard player. After a brief time with club act ‘Blaze’, he was invited to join ‘Drops of Brandy’, whose main work at the time was as resident band at Bailey’s in Derby.

While the experience of gigging was useful, there was little development in the original material front – being a covers

band, new chart material had to be learned constantly. As it happened, guitarist Steve Roberts and drummer Ted Duggan were also keen to start performing original material too. Drops of Brandy split, with Tim (keyboards), Steve (guitars) and Ted (drums) determined to form an originals band. They recruited bass player Mick Harrington, then eventually found singer Pat Millar – the lineup was complete. Paris gigged in and around Coventry, with music that was melodic and energetic, with strong riffs and tight harmonies. Mick left soon after the bookings started, replaced by Fran Pettifer. Later, Ted left to join a professional outfit, replaced by Danny Livesey. However the current music scene was post-punk/ new wave, and Coventry was getting known for the Two-tone label a high-energy approach to ska and reggae.

Paris gained some popularity, and even caught the attention of up-and-coming recording facility Q-Studios, just outside Leicester. They even ‘beta-tested’ the new video facility they were building. But despite the quality of their music, not being fashionable, and without a manager (despite efforts to find and work with one), the band started feeling frustrations, especially Tim. Eventually Tim sensed the move towards synthesizer bands, and also developed a relationship which was to become his first marriage. He left the band, which continued with a few of the original songs, but devolved into another covers band.

Other things being equal, the music of Paris could have brought pleasure to many. Coventry is pretty much off the map so far as the music industry is concerned, and without a manager with contacts and who knew what they were doing, the odds were stacked against them. This website has been set up as an archive of some of the music, maybe for a new generation to discover and enjoy, and for those precious few loyal fans to re-discover after nearly 30 years. I hope you enjoy the content, it will be added to now and again. But there is not much high quality material, the majority of recordings being done in Tim’s notorious flat in Spencer Avenue!”

Via Laurence Benjamin Arnold

Here’s a brilliant video done for us by In Room Productions/ Wild Fish of the signature track, ‘Paris Fashions’

Tim Constable update 2016
When Paris ‘split’ by me leaving in 1983, the others got in a guitarist, Keith Tallis, and continued under the name ‘Hard Lines’. They also found it hard work and fizzled out around 1987.Flash forward to 2012. The members of Paris had all pretty much lost contact with each other, but Keith died of a stroke. At his funeral, Pat, Danny, Steve and Fran found themselves under the same roof at the same time in about 27 years! They got talking, and as Fran had by now developed into a very competent producer engineer, with his own studio – Woodshed 2000 – thought about recording some of the material ‘just for posterity’. But they didn’t want to do it without me. Fran’s brother, David, found me through FaceBook, and invited me to join a get together at the studio. We said our hellos etc, and within about ½ hour started playing through some songs as if it was yesterday! This led to starting the recording project, and we spend 2013-2014 recording. 14 tracks were eventually finished, including a new recording of the Christmas single we released in 1980. The other 13 were so good we asked Roger Lomas to master them. The result is an album ‘Unfinished Business’ “80’s music you’ve never heard before!”. We tried to find a music or promotion company to promote the album but couldn’t find a suitable deal, so earlier this year, as I was in a position to do something about it, I got the songs registered, did all the art work and set it up on CD Baby. I also had 100 physical CDs made.

Above – Extract from Johnny Adams letter Oct 1980 and below the second letter.

In the letters Johnny Adams sent me a poem he’d written and a new song lyric – below.

Johnny Adams back in the days of Fission

BLACKPOOL PROMENADE 

Where have all the Zombies gone
Gone to Blackpool everyone
Doing things, they’re all the same
Plastic towers, human drains.
Blackpool lights shining bright
A waste of space, a waste of time
Cream faced children tied to names
Everybody here, they all look the same.
What a drag, what a bore
But they all come back for more.
Twisted minds, mangled souls
All come back as Blackpool fools.

Johnny Adams

SOLDIER

Step in line, better be on time

No deserters

Disciplined to use your own mind

The Sergeant keeps you all in line.

The light brigade, school boy game

Rajinder Singh Rai ( born 1973), better known by his stage name Panjabi MC is a Indian musician. He is best known for the worldwide bhangra hit Mundian To Bach Ke” (1998) video below.

Line up: John Rushton – lead guitar, and others.

Based in Kenilworth.